Southern girl goes on Safari
Trip Start
Mar 02, 2006
1
11
14
Trip End
Apr 28, 2006
Alldays, South Africa
Saturday, March 25, 2006
Alldays, South Africa
Limpopo Province
Hi all,
I haven't been so great about writing lately (slow internet connection at work, no internet at home), but I've still been experiencing a ton! I've got some catching up to do. Skim the next few entries as you like, or come back from time to time to catch up in chunks.
First up, my safari trip.
Before I dive in, the video posted is about 3 minutes, 45 seconds and is a collection of photos documenting the safari journey of The Dude. He's the "ugly doll" Jeff sent me to South Africa with and The Dude has been having a grand time of it here. He has in many ways become the trip mascot for anyone traveling with me, with people suggesting, "Take a picture of The Dude here!" or "Take a picture of The Dude there!" Enjoy.
To see photos, just follow this link:
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8AaMmLlu5Zsm92
You don't have to sign in, just click on "View Now." I'm not thrilled with the way the pictures load on TravelPod, so I thought it would be easier to just include a link to Shutterfly.
Now, on to the safari!
I went to the far eastern part of South Africa (bordering Botswana and Zimbabwe) from March 17 to 25 to write a travel story about going on a family safari. I joined a family of 5 for eight days as we stayed in an exclusive, completely private, luxury lodge in the middle of the bush. Nothing-and I mean nothing-was around, except tall grass, baobab trees, and lots and lots of animals, insects, and loud frogs. No phones or TVs in our rooms (fabulous!), and no internet connection. The teens in the group of course thought they were going to die from not being able to talk to their friends back home. Meanwhile, I was in heaven. The only communication I received were some thoughtful and romantic faxes from Jeff (which the entire staff read before me and later made fun of me for!).
We ventured to the famed Kruger National Park one day, crossed a river by a somewhat sketchy cable car into Botswana, and crossed the Tropic of Capricorn, (One of three of the most significant imaginary lines running across the surface of the earth, along with the equator and the Tropic of Cancer. The sun is directly overhead at noon on the Tropic of Capricorn on December 21, winter solstice- the beginning of winter in the Northern Hemisphere and the beginning of summer in the Southern Hemisphere.) Yes, I am a geek. I find this to be very cool. Now if only I could stand in that exact spot on Dec. 21! When looking through my pictures, note the South African government's misspelling of the sign. Oops.
We saw lions feeding, some seriously snarling buffalo who weren't happy to see us, tons of different kinds of beautiful and graceful antelopes, vervet monkeys, baboons, a variety of beautiful birds, and my favorites: giraffes and zebras. I was also entranced (as usual) by the insects.
One of the strangest: the dung beetle. These nasty looking bugs are slightly smaller than a deck of cards, and they FLY. They buzz loudly past your head and for a split second you think it's a hummingbird. Not so. They lay their eggs in piles of dung, roll it up into a ball, and then the larvae then eat their way out to go on to become big, nasty adult dung beetles themselves. Fascinating. Posted are some photos of the dung balls and beetles digging holes in the ground. You'll also see a photo of an armored grasshopper-very different from anything I've ever seen in the States!
I fell in love with a tree called the baobab, which can live over 1,000 years. While they're not wildly tall, a baobab trunk is so wide that it qualifies as one of the largest in the world. I've heard that in some African cultures, families used to live inside hollowed-out baobab trees and that church services are still held today under the shade of boabab trees, whose branches reach up almost directly toward the sky (legend has it that the tree is upside down, with the roots on the top). Next time I'm coming back with my climbing gear!
We also feasted on the succulent yellow fruits from the marula tree. When walking or driving past a marula tree in season, the air is heavily and sweetly perfumed with the ripe fruit's scent. We were told when eating these fruits to first roll them around between our palms to squeeze the juice out of the flesh, then to careful bite on one end until the juice bursts into your mouth. It's slightly lemon-like, but sweeter. Kind of like a Sweetart candy. Elephants love marula and are known for feasting on them to the point that the fruit ferments in their full bellies and makes them drunk. Seriously. This is true. We had hoped to witness a drunk elephant, but no such luck.
We also tasted some fantastic South African meals. One local dish we tried was called "pap," which is ground maize and is a lot like Southern grits, but not soupy and not buttered up or salted. In our case, it was served with steak and a tomato chutney of sorts. Divine! We also discovered that South Africa is known for its potato chips, including flavors like "chicken & thyme" (actually pretty tasty), "smoked beef" (ew), and "peppadew" (fantastic!), which is similar to BBQ but with an extra kick. Peppadews are small red-colored peppers that have some heat to them. They're served here on pizzas and sandwiches and I love them.
One of the best parts of staying at this luxury lodge (aside from having your laundry done every day, lounging by the pool and being served afternoon sandwiches, sweets, and tea), was the lovely staff of four Sutu women who cooked and cleaned for us. (Yes, it's tough for me to get over the guilt of being pampered in such an unnecessary way and the feeling of "us" and "them" that it can create-especially when the black/white race lines are so clearly drawn.) I befriended Monica, the lead cook and a lovely, lovely woman whose genuine smile and bright eyes were a shining reminder of what a spirited inner life one can lead. She showed me pictures of her beautiful baby daughter, whose name translates into the word "gift," and showed me her kitchen where she creates all her magic. Unemployment is of course a huge problem throughout South Africa, so Monica is in many ways lucky to have a job. Still, having a job means all the way out here means she's separated from her family. She has a 9-year-old who lives in the Eastern Cape with Monica's mother and Monica is only able to travel home to see them once or twice a year. (The lodge kindly pays for her travel to see them.) While at the lodge, she lives with the other women in a small house within walking distance. Her 1-year-old daughter lives with her father in town, about 45 minutes away. She sees them about once a month.
Wherever I go, there are interesting personal connections to be made. I think I'm fairly good at doing this even at home, when every day life can become routine, but my eyes and ears are certainly more open when I'm in a foreign country. Traveling is a constant reminder for me that there's no reason not to be just as open when at home. Everyone has a fascinating story. And that's what's really at the heart of my love of being a journalist, filmmaker, or photographer. I'm reminded of why I've chosen the path I've chosen-and simultaneously of why sitting in an office and working by phone (which has comprised much of my journalism work), is NOT the kind of journalism I strive to do any more. Now that I've quit my job, however, I just need to figure out how to, you know, do that little thing that's necessary in life called making money!
